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Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. The Government states that it has finalized the Employment Action Plan, which is based on the four pillars of the Luxembourg Summit Agreement (employability, entrepreneurship, adaptability, and equal opportunity). The Government states that the Employment Action Plan and general employment strategy were established in collaboration with the social partners, and formally agreed to in two signed documents, in 1996 and 1997. The report provides detailed information on programmes established and measures taken to date to implement the Employment Action Plan. The Committee asks the Government to provide information in future reports on the outcome of the measures taken under the Employment Action Plan, in particular the effect on employment promotion in the Mezzogiorno. In this respect, the Committee notes the detailed employment statistics for managers provided by the Minister of Labour. It would appreciate receiving disaggregated employment data on the other segments of the labour market, in particular concerning youth, women, people with disabilities, and the long-term unemployed, as requested in the report form under Article 1.

The Committee also notes the labour market trends indicated in the Annual Report of the National Statistical Institute (presented May 2000) concerning gender issues in employment. The Report states that there is a high presence of women in tertiary activities, as well as exceptional access for women to generally male-dominated professions. The percentage of men in female-dominated professions has also increased. However, the Government comments that "women usually have educational backgrounds and certificates for which there is less demand", leading to lower pay; and "even when women have the same characteristics as men, women experience more difficulties accessing the job market", leading to lower compensation. Women in the Mezzogiorno have more limited access to training. Lastly, the increase in the number of senior citizens has placed an increased burden on women to remain out of the labour market for longer periods of time or to seek primarily part-time or temporary work in order to care for dependents. The Committee appreciates the complexity of the issues involved, and notes the strategies the Government has already adopted to promote employment for women, in particular increasing female self-employment and entrepreneurship. It would appreciate receiving further information on the efforts to improve women’s access to training and to ensure that the training provided better meets market demands for skills; and on strategies developed to ease the burden of caretaking for women who wish to remain in or re-enter the labour market.

The Annual Report of the National Statistical Institute also indicates that young people have more difficulties accessing training courses because training generally is biased towards university graduates, workers with professional diplomas, and workers with work experience. The Committee notes from the OECD Economic Survey for Italy that the Government has adopted a master plan to improve training which targets the needs of youth. However, the OECD considers that the Government is under-investing in skills development, and that much of unemployment can be accounted for by mismatch of skills to demand in the labour market. Please provide further information on the outcome of the master plan, particularly concerning employment promotion for youth.